Penn State to host Parents & Families Weekend

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.-- The Penn State Parents Program plans to hold Parents & Families Weekend from Friday to Sunday afternoon.

The weekend is strategically placed about six weeks after the semester has started, as students are typically ready for a visit by this time.

“Even though I’m from the parents program, everything we do is about student success,” Cyndy Hill, director of the Parents Program, said.

Hill explained how important it is for a student’s parent or guardian to be well-informed and involved in order for a student to succeed. One way to do so is by participating in the weekend events and getting a feel for how their student lives at school.

With 3,200 families registered for the events planned to be held this weekend, the events and activities have to be detail-specific.

Therefore, the Parents Program begins preparations a year in advance.

“Planning Parents & Families Weekend is actually a year-long process,” said Hill. “So as soon as we end, next week we start planning the next one.

The events are planned to have parents experience the college life their students are having. Student performances give a quick look into this experience.

“We have an acapella concert, we have the dancers, we have the jazz band that performs at the welcome breakfast,” Hill said.

In addition to typical daily activities, the Parents Program has unique opportunities like touring Beaver Stadium and a tailgate-style watch party for the football game on Saturday.

Michele Rymdeika, a parents' council chair, has been involved in the Parents Program since 2018. Rymdeika explained the process the council goes through to implement parent feedback into the planning for next year’s events.

“Every year we are sort of reassessing the weekend to see how we would want to change it to better meet the needs of the families,” Rymdeika said.

As a parent herself, Rymdeika is adamant about the importance of Parents & Families weekend for not only the parents but mainly the students.

“Even if you’re not doing all the events all weekend long on campus, just go and be in their space and their atmosphere,” said Rymdeika.

The Penn State Parents Program hopes to provide an eventful reunion of students and their families this weekend.

For more information about Parents & Families Weekend events and registration, visit https://studentaffairs.psu.edu/parents-families/parents-families-weekend.

Cassie Baylis is a fourth-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact her, email ceb6085@psu.edu.